New statistics published by the American Cancer Society should be alarming. The numbers point to an increase in colon malignancy in people in their 20s, 30s and 40s. Yet, there’s been a decrease in large bowel cancer among those over the age of 65. In people under 50, the rate […]
Author: W. Gifford-Jones, MD and Diana Gifford-Jones
Common Sense Health: Are the U.S. Presidential Candidates Too Old?
It’s a question on the minds of most Americans, and others too. Biden is 81 and Trump 77. Are they sufficiently health of body and mind to be President? Neither candidate has agreed to a comprehensive and transparent assessment of their mental health. But their state of mind is important, […]
Common Sense Health: The Forever Formula for Good Health and Longevity
Readers often ask me what it takes to reach 100. My answer is always the same. Good genes. Good luck. And a lifetime of good choices about my health. “What about your daily regimen of high dose vitamin C and lysine?” That’s right, I say. It’s my forever formula for […]
Common Sense Health: Life in an Iron Lung Is a Test of Tolerance
Reading a recent tribute to the life of Paul Alexander brought back horrible memories for me. Paul Alexander was only six years of age when he developed polio. The result? He spent the rest of his life enclosed in an iron lung. I too had polio in my final year […]
Common Sense Health: Kidney Disease Has No Good Ending
Will humans ever learn to care for their kidneys? Or will they live to count mixed blessings – staying alive but reliant on a machine to clean the blood. This, or a kidney transplant, is the result of end-stage kidney failure. Over 40 million North Americans are living with the […]
Common Sense Health: Some Advice Never Ages
After 10 books, over 2,500 columns, and nearly 50 years of writing it, some things bear repeating. This week revisits a column from three decades ago about how to prepare for surgery. Has anything changed? From that old column, “What would God do if He were a surgeon? If it […]
Common Sense Health: What Women Suffer Most from Menopause
There’s a universal fact for women. If they live long enough, their capacity to bring forth children will end, and they will become menopausal. Menopause can be when the thermostat becomes their most prized possession. But not all women have hot flashes. Some go through this period wondering why they […]
Common Sense Health: Protecting Eyesight with the Right Food
It was 200 years ago that Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, a French lawyer and culinary writer, first wrote “Tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are.” It’s a simple and enduring message. But people are not being watchful of what they eat, and it is having […]
Common Sense Health: What to Know About Mammography Debate
At what age should women’s breasts receive radiation to detect breast cancer? In Canada, some provinces are lowering the age of eligibility from 50 to 40, even before a task force releases an update on breast cancer screening guidelines. The current guidelines do not recommend routine screening for women in […]
Common Sense Health: A Failing Grade in Basic Mathematics
Have even one in a thousand North Americans ever heard of Kissick’ s Law? More than 25 years ago, if you were reading the Ontario Medical Review, you would have seen an article, written by Dr. Samuel Vaisrub, explaining the message. Kissick stated that if the U.S. Declaration of Independence […]